Center of Unbroken Praise – Psalm 148

"Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights above. Praise him all his angels; praise him all his heavenly hosts. Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars. Praise him, you highest heavens and you waters above the skies. Let them praise the name of the Lord, for at his command they were created, and he established them forever and ever; he issued a decree that will never pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths, lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do his bidding, you mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars, wild animals and all cattle, small creatures and flying birds, kings of the earth and all nations, you princes and rulers on earth, young men and women, old men and children. Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted; his splendor is above the earth and the heavens. And he has raised up for his people a horn, the praise of all his faithful servants, of Israel, the people close to his heart. Praise the Lord." Psalm 148

Today I want to address the theological understanding that there is nothing that contains God but that everything is contained by God. This Psalm appears to cover every aspect that you and I can image of the things we should praise God for because he contains them all. Praise the Lord! When this Psalm was written it was the faithful servants of Israel that were close to his heart. I believe they still are, but we can since the death and resurrection of our Lord add that he has raised up the church, his faithful servants as the people that are close to his heart.

Picture if you will a circle, an eternal circle in which nothing exists outside of that circle. Everything exists within that circle. This gives us a picture of God. Genesis 1:1:In the beginning God… Everything begins with God who created all things. God is the only one who created anything. Beginning in Genesis 1:3 we hear this expression, “ And God said… No human being has ever been able to speak anything into existence. We can make things but that is different. We are taking materials that already exist and putting them together to do something whether it is a car, house, etc. These things are made, but God created by speaking things like light, oceans, etc. into existence. If you are the creator, you must also be the one who contains everything and outside of you nothing can exist. Paul in Colossians 1:15-20: "The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things are held together. And he is the head of the body the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so then in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." In this passage we see several descriptions that point to Christ as containing everything. He is described as being the creator, things of heaven and earth. He is described as before all things and the one who holds all things together, that in everything he might have the preeminence.

Another passage that reveals that God contains everything is Psalm 139:7-18: "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, 'Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me.' Even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful; I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes, saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them." The Psalmist declares that there is no place that he can go that is outside of God’s awareness. God sees and knows everything about us.

There is a verse in the old hymn Joyful, Joyful We Adore You, that magnifies the meaning of God containing all things. It goes like this:

All Your works with joy surround You,

Earth and heaven reflect Your rays,

Stars and angels sing around You,

Center of unbroken praise;

This leads to the application piece:

First: I can fully trust God because there is nothing that can exceed or escape his power and control.

Second: Not only is he the circumference of all things, but he is also at the center of all things

As a result we can trust that God is too loving to be unkind, and to wise to make a mistake and when I can’t see his hand, I can always trust his heart!

And because of these, no matter what has happened in our life and ministry we can turn to Him and know that He is not finished with us.

©2025 David W. Drake, President, Renewed Hope, Inc.